Population Connection Action Fund

Field & outreach: to assist Population Connection Action Fund activists nationwide in building and sustaining state and local educational, media and lobbying efforts on behalf of Population Connection Action Fund through organizing and providing training, technical assistance and funding. Represent Population Connection Action Fund in coalitions focused on grassroots Action and at public presentations and exhibitions as needed. To put pressure on elected officials and candidates for office to support international family planning, and to work to elect candidates who will advance pro international family planning and reproductive health policy once in office. 2022 highlights include: our annual capitol hill days advocacy event. We hosted 47 activists for the virtual event, who attended a variety of sessions focused on domestic and global reproductive health policy, family planning and reproductive health programs around the world, storytelling for organizing, and climate, Population, and reproductive health. We also hosted an advocacy training to prepare activists to meet, virtually, with their members of congress. During our lobby day, 18 activists met with 32 house and senate offices to lobby for a greater u.s. investment in international family planning, support for unfpa, and a permanent legislative ban on the global gag rule. Working with our domestic reproductive health, rights, and justice partners to fight against abortion bans and threats to reproductive freedom following the overturning of roe v. wade. These events included an immediate debriefing event--following the overturning of roe v. wade in dobbs vs. jackson women's health organization--an "abortion defender" training, two letter to the editor trainings, and panel events with global partners, as well as abortion providers. 131 people attended these events. In the fall, we focused all of our energy on the 2022 midterm elections, working to support candidates in Nevada and Pennsylvania. We worked with political campaigns and democratic organizations like the democratic congressional campaign committee to support several candidates in both the house and senate, and engaged activists through phone banking, text banking, and door-door canvassing.

Government relations: we worked to promote the global health, empowerment and rights (her) act to prevent a future president from reimposing the global gag rule; we worked to increase us investment in family planning and reproductive health programs around the world; we worked to restore aid to the united nations Population Fund (unfpa); we supported legislation to protect american women's access to reproductive health care, including safe abortion; we worked to increase funding for the title x domestic family planning program; we worked to educate candidates for federal office on the need for real investment in comprehensive reproductive health care across the united states and around the world; we worked to promote the abortion is healthcare everywhere act to repeal helms amendment.

Communications: our communications staff attended the international conference on family planning in thailand in november 2022, where we hosted an exhibit booth and shared information about our organization and about demography and its relationship to reproductive health with other conference attendees. We published print and online versions of our congressional report card, which tracked the reproductive health votes made by every member of congress in 2022. Our social media outreach and engagement on facebook, twitter, and instagram allowed us to connect with supporters and with members of congress and likeminded organizations.

Membership: success in the areas of advocacy and public education depends largely on the support and dedication of the organization's members. Presently, our members assist us by informing on Population issues, writing letters to congressional leaders, signing petitions, getting opinion letters published in local papers, and speaking about Population issues at local community events. We support our members by holding training and information sessions, responding to their correspondence, request for information and orders for our publications.